Archives

Jeanette Sinclair ~ Photographer

Follow me on Twitter

woodside images

“Truth, like art, is in the eye of the beholder. You believe what you choose and I’ll believe what I know.” ~ Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

For the past few years I’ve had the privilege of photographing public gardens for Horticulture Magazine. My last assignment took me to Alcatraz, the last place you would expect to find beautiful gardens and landscape. Quick history, this maximum federal prison in the San Francisco Bay closed it’s doors in 1963, along with the gardens cultivated by the prison’s inmates. In 2003, the Garden Conservancy, Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, and National Park Service began a collaboration to restore the gardens.

I was able to capture the images needed for the magazine feature before high sun. With time to spare on the island, we were given a backstage pass to the upper levels of the prison and to the Ai Weiwei exhibit, which was on its last day of viewing.

In the prison, we were ushered to the upper deck of Block C and given access to the lever which secures the entire cell block. Standing in the darkness, the sound of 50 cells slamming shut, with the final latch of the deadbolt, is a sound you want to quickly erase from your tape. I took a moment to stand inside a cell and decided to capture a few images looking out and across the aisle. Clearly, this place was designed to house the worse of the worst.

The bonus of the visit was the Ai Weiwei @Large exhibit. We happened to be on the island on the last day of the Exhibit and our host generously walked us through. “Ai Weiwei is a Chinese Contemporary artist and activist. A political activist, he has been highly and openly critical of the Chinese Government’s stance on democracy and human rights. After many arrests and incarcerations in China, Ai Weiwei was, in July of 2015, given a passport and is now allowed to travel abroad. If you are interested and would like to learn more about Ai Weiwei and his art, this is a wonderful article. http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/sep/24/ai-weiwei-alcatraz-lego-extraordinary

If you have a bird phobia, you’ll want to make note that Alcatraz is a nesting colony for Western Gulls. There were a few Hitchcock moments.

Without further ado, here are my favorite images from Pier 33 to Alcatraz and back. Enjoy! ✌🏾

While it seemed like spring arrived in NoCal months ago, the rest of the country is finally starting to see the signs of warmer temps with blossoms blooming. Spring has officially sprung! So let’s party!

Last spring I had the privilege of shooting two of the most prestigous public gardens in California for Horticulture Magazine; Hakone Gardens and Filoli. Both gardens are located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains, to which I call home. Filoli is a country house with 16 acres of formal gardens surrounded by a 654-acre estate, located in Woodside, CA. Filoli has served as the set for many Hollywood films. Many of you will recognize it as the mansion seen in the opening credits of the television series Dynasty. Hakone Gardens is a traditional Japanese garden in Saratoga, California. It is recognized as one of the oldest Japanese-style residential garden in the Western Hemisphere. I believe Hakone served as set for the films Snow Falling on Cedars and Memoirs of a Geisha.

When my journey as a professional photographer began, my lens focused primarily on landscapes and flowers. Over a decade later, I am a lucky girl to have been able to maintain this focus while adding a few other ingredients to my repertoire. For those of you who need a dose of spring, take a few minutes and take a virtual walk through these breathtaking gardens. 🌸

“Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

The last few months have seen a flurry of photo sessions of many flavors leaving little time to work on my blog or my art photography. 2014 was very good to me professionally, so, this is not a complaint. I intended to take the month of January to get back to my blog and art, however, ended up taking on two projects that, once again, put everything back on the shelf.

I have been seeking inspiration and feeling the need for a new perspective. A new path, if you will, for the next steps on my journey. I thought my trip back to my hometown in the Ohio river valley would do the trick. With railroad tracks on my mind, my goal was set – a cold, grey day on the old, rusty rails in my small town. I envisioned capturing haunting images of the overgrowth and the deteriorating trestle over the little river. The best laid plans. The overgrown tracks were gone, apparently replaced long ago with a bike trail and the trestle most likely collapsed into the river long before the bike trail came to town. I got one thing right, it was cold and grey. My camera stayed snuggly in it’s bag, I didn’t venture out once, and somehow I caught flu. I came home sick and uninspired.

Fast forward to yesterday. With the hope of a new vision or direction still looking bleak, an artist friend and I went to visit some galleries in San Francisco in preparation of an Open Studio this spring that will feature her paintings and my photography. First stop, an old coffee shop on the pier. As I sat with my coffee looking out the window of the empty cafe, I felt the first hint of an inspirational wave approaching. Before me, the perfect vision out of the dirty old window. As if the Bay Bridge was painted on canvas. Snap. As we waited for the curator to welcome us to the gallery, I turned to take in the Bay between two old warehouses. Below me, above the water of the Bay were the rusty, overgrown tracks of some railroad of long ago. Built on a trestle, these tracks came out of nowhere below and reached into the Bay, disappearing into the grey morning fog. This remarkable and eerily beautiful sight, presenting as if it was staged exclusively for me. Perhaps it is true. I am a child of the universe and the universe is unfolding as it should. I didn’t need to travel 2,000 miles to find my inspiration, 20 miles was enough. The universe conspired to make it happen. Snap.

“No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist.” ~ Oscar Wilde

My black and white work is what fulfills me the most as an artist. I feel somewhat indifferent to how others view these photographs. Black and white energizes me … touches my soul. The same does not necessarily hold true of my color work. With color, I feel much more vulnerable and judged and the work feels a little more commercial and contrived. And, of course it would (and probably should), because I am commissioned for much of my colored work. Don’t get me wrong, commissions and publications are a VERY good thing. It’s just that I have recently been recognized for a few black and whites. I can’t explain the joy it brings because it is in black and white where I feel and find my truth.

“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” ~ Pablo Picasso

I dreamed of one day going to Spain. I had the opportunity to join my best friend after graduating from high school. I opted to stay home with a newly scored boyfriend, while she and two other girls traipsed around Spain and Portugal with their backpacks. BIG MISTAKE! This is the time in your life for youth hostels, Eurail passes and free spirits NOT high school boyfriends and lousy summer jobs.

Lucky for me, opportunity knocked again last summer. “Where would you like to go to celebrate your half century on this planet?” Bryan asked. Without hesitation, “Spain”. So, almost 32 years to the day, we headed to Spain. No backpacks, no youth hostels (thank you Airbnb); however, I opted for the Eurail pass rather than a car or flight from Barcelona to Málaga.

The trip was remarkable. We were free spirits in Spain, me, Bryan and Ally, each of us having a dear friend by our side. It may have taken awhile to get here, but, it sure was worth the wait. I will have an apartment in Barcelona again, one day. I will travel back to Málaga and Marbella and sit with a sangria in hand, a flower in my hair and watch the sun set over the Mediterranean.

Recently, I had the privilege of spending a Saturday morning at the beach in Half Moon Bay with two beautiful, little girls. We were there to get some snaps for the annual Christmas card and updates for the parents and grandparents. The older daughter, serendipitously, is a member of the Class of 2020 =). It seems appropriate, in my efforts to stay true to my blog, that I share moments and thoughts from this particular photo shoot.

These captured moments lend to my goal to remain true as straight photographer (look it up) in a digital world. In my amateur days, I was once told by a professional that I must define myself in order to be a successful. You must promote yourself as garden photographer, an equestrian photographer or commercial photographer. Well, those who know me know why I will never compartmentalize myself or my photography.

The girls were a delight. Always wondering and worrying if I got the shot, I paced a bit and stumbled over some seaweed that, when hooked in my toe, began to form an arc. The girls looked at it, and, saw a heart. They finished creating the seaweed heart, and, then giddily went on to make their own in the sand. Two beautiful, loving sisters at the end of magical morning at the beach. The last shot of the day (the one above) is always my favorite.